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Barbarians
'Society ' The society of the Eolar, also called Barbarians or Wild Ones- Decision-making system: in each village or tribe, when a new law is proposed or a decision needs to be made that will affect the people, the people of each village gather in the center of their village to decide their views. Each person has a white stone and a black stone, and after the tribe is told of the law, he takes them to a pot and drops one in- white for yes, black for no. After the vote is taken, two members of the tribe (different people are appointed for each decision, and chosen from volunteers) aid the chief in counting the number of each color stone. Whichever color is the majority, the chief takes a stone of that color to the meeting at the capital, where the heads of each tribe go through the process of putting their stones in. Afterward, the stones in that pot are counted. If there is a majority of black stones, the law is not passed; if white stones are in the majority, the law is passed. Children are taught to respect nature, and not kill animals except when necessary. In the main, the evidence is of tribes being led by kings. Most descriptions portray them as being divided into three groups: a warrior aristocracy; an intellectual class including professions such as mage and Bard; and everyone else. The offices of high and low kings are filled by election by choosing from the relatives of the ruling king or those before. There are many ancient track ways crossing bogs and plains, though whether they were made by the Wild Ones or some ancient race is unknown. The territory held by them contains tin, lead, iron, silver, and gold. Smiths and metalworkers create much in the way of weapons and jewelry for trade. The oldest recorded rhyming poetry in the world is of Barbarian origin and is a transcription of a much older epic poem, leading some scholars to claim that they invented rhyme. Their art also produces a great deal of intricate and beautiful metalwork. According to Alom Ricli: ‘For they are always washing their hair in limewater and they pull it back from the forehead to the nape of the neck, with the result that their appearance is like that of Satyrs since the treatment of their hair makes it so heavy and coarse that it differs in no respect from the mane of horses. Some of them shave the beard but others let it grow a little.’ Some tribes have more of a horse culture, and therefore place a great deal of importance on horses; however, they are not nomadic, and instead live in fixed villages, though the hunters travel far across the plains on their horses. The Wild Ones hunt with spears, bow and arrows, and various forms of clubs, as well as making use of hunting dogs (See below). The use of horses makes hunting (and warfare) much easier. There are many places in the barbarian lands where people (perhaps the ancient Eolar, or the same people that made the ancient roadways) have created large white horse figures, by the method known as covering. It is the best and lowest-upkeep way to construct, done by placing white rocks on top of chalk figures where the earth has been cut away to reveal the underlying chalk. 'Clothing ' The Wild Ones generally wear long-sleeved shirts or tunics and long trousers, often with a short cape coming down the back and halfway to the knee. Clothes are made generally of furs, leather and hides, Cloaks being worn in the winter. Brooches and armlets are used, but the most famous item of jewelry is the torc, a neck collar of metal, sometimes gold. 'Art ' They retain a preference for geometrical decoration over figurative subjects, which are often extremely stylized when they do appear; narrative scenes only appear under outside influence. Energetic circular forms, triskeles and spirals are characteristic. Much of the material is in precious metal, but great carved stone, mostly with decorative carving, is also found; it is also common in wood. 'Death Customs ' The ancient tribes of the plains created great stone barrows, which were normally covered with turf after the interring of the deceased, along with great stores of treasure. In modern times, the body is interred in a six-foot deep hole, along with their burial treasure, and a mound constructed on top. 'Dogs ' The people make use of a breed of dog for various purposes, that seems to be a sort like a mixture of Labrador Retriever, Cretan Hound, Irish setter, Border Collie, and Jack Russell, though probably also related to a type like the Arabian Wolf, as it is only partially domesticated. 'Warfare and weapons ' Tribal warfare appears to have once been a regular feature of their society. While epic literature depicts this as more of a sport focused on raids and hunting rather than organized territorial conquest, there are a few records of tribes using warfare to exert political control and harass rivals, for economic advantage, and in some instances to conquer territory; however, most was of the previous type. The principal weapon of warfare is a long bladed sword, which is used for hacking edgewise rather than stabbing; however, normal hunting weapons are also used. In fact, the Eolar have a reputation for their archers, and many gain employment as mercenaries Category:Races